The sound was soft and clean, two sheets of paper separated at the fold.
Ignoring the way Lexi’s jaw dropped beside him, Rhys turned directly to the account manager and spoke with absolute clarity.
“Miss, Remove every authorization my wife currently has. From now on, no transfer, withdrawal, or account change is to be approved unless I appear here personally with valid identification.”
The account manager hesitated for only a second before nodding. “Right away, Mr. Darby.”
Lexi stared at him as though she had just watched a stranger crawl out of her husband’s skin.
“No. Don’t listen to him!” She hurried toward the desk. “He doesn’t know what he’s saying.”
But the manager responded with an apologetic but firm tone, "the accounts are legally registered in his name alone. You have no authority to stop him."
She looked back at Rhys. "Sir, would you like this processed immediately?"
"Immediately," Rhys answered without hesitation.
What? Lexi went still.
For years, she had spent Rhys’s money as though it belonged to the Stowe family. He had paid their bills, funded their plans, and cleaned up every mess they made without protest.
So why had he suddenly changed?
She neither understood nor cared to understand. She just spun on him, her shock rapidly curdling into fury.
“What is wrong with you?” she hissed. “What are you trying to prove with this little stunt? How am I supposed to pay for Chris’s expenses? Or my mother’s bills?”
Rhys looked at her. Once, he had seen the woman he loved. Now he saw only a parasite whose entire existence relied on draining him dry.
“I don’t know, Lexi, ” he said flatly. “Maybe you can ask Curry to solve this problem. I’m done.”
Lexi flinched. For one brief instant, naked panic flashed through her eyes. Then she buried it beneath familiar outrage.
“How many times do I have to tell you? There is nothing going on between Curry and me!” she snapped. “Can you stop acting like a toxic, insecure chauvinist?”
Before Rhys could answer, the manager opened the office door to carry out his instructions. Henry Stowe immediately pushed past her and stormed inside, irritation written all over his face.
"What are you arguing about?" Henry folded his arms, looking between his sister and his brother-in-law with an entitled scowl. "What's all this? And more importantly, where's my million?"
Rhys gave him a cold, appraising glance. “If you want money, earn it like every honest man does.”
“What the hell? Are you backing out on me, Rhys?” Henry’s face twisted with sudden, ugly anger. “We had a deal!”
“There was never a deal,” Rhys replied, his voice completely hollow of the deference he used to show them. “There was only a family that convinced itself it had the right to spend my money whenever it pleased.”
"You son of a bitch!" Henry snapped. He took a heavy, aggressive step forward, raising a hand.
"Careful," Rhys said, and something in his tone, something so cold and final, made Henry stop mid-sentence.
Rhys calmly buttoned his coat, turned, and walked out without another word.
Behind him, Lexi and Henry finally recovered from their shock. Their furious voices chased him down the marble hallway. First his name, then threats, then something about Henry's business. But none of it mattered anymore.
Ninety-two days. that's all Rhys could think about. This time, he would be ready for everything. He needed supplies. He needed a fortified shelter. He needed capital.
At the moment, he owned little more than a modest bank balance, a seven-year-old sedan, and perfect knowledge of the catastrophe that was coming.
But there was one more thing.
A faint trace of coolness rested against his chest.
The pendant.
Rhys reached beneath his shirt and closed his fingers around it. He had never imagined that it would return with him as well.
The pendant had been created near the end of civilization, when governments were pouring their last resources into technology that might keep humanity alive.
Rhys found a deserted alley, bit the tip of his finger, and allowed a drop of blood to fall onto the pendant.
A blinding light erupted before his eyes.
When he opened them again, he stood inside an empty apartment.
The dimensional space.
There was no running water, no electricity, and not a single piece of furniture. The apartment contained two bedrooms and a living room, covering roughly one hundred and twenty square meters. The ceilings were nearly three meters high, and beyond the balcony lay a small garden.
Rhys stared around him, his breathing quickening. “I can’t even imagine how many supplies I could store in here.”
The possibilities were staggering.
Anything placed inside would remain exactly as it was. Food would never rot. Water would never evaporate. Hot meals would stay hot, and frozen goods would remain frozen.
The technology had been one of humanity’s greatest achievements. But in his previous life, it had come far too late. By the time it was invented, there had been almost nothing left to preserve. But this time, Rhys would make full use of it.
But of course, the technology had one limitation.
Rhys walked into the living room and looked up at the glowing timer suspended in midair. 26:20.
The numbers continued to tick down, second by second.
He could remain inside the dimensional space for only thirty minutes at a time. Once he left, he would have to wait twenty-four hours before entering again.
Rhys smiled. For now, that was hardly a problem.
A moment later, he left the dimensional apartment and returned to the outside world.
His pulse quickened, not with fear or simple amazement, but with the cold, focused exhilaration of a commander who had just received reinforcements one minute before the war.
Rhys stepped onto the crowded street.
The city moved around him as usual. Cars rolled through the intersection. A couple argued over where to eat. A delivery driver hurried past with a stack of warm meals.
Above them, the sky was clear, blue, and flooded with sunlight, as though it might remain that way forever.
Rhys knew it was not.
He had ninety-two days to prepare for the moment when that sky came crashing down.
And when it did, he intended to be the one holding the key to survival.
Latest Chapter
Chapter 12: The Attorney, the Performance, and the Empty Chair
Lexi stopped beside Rhys's table and looked down at him with a sneer.“And you have the nerve to accuse me of cheating?” she shot back. “When you’re the one who’s got a lover on the side.”The woman across from Rhys immediately straightened."Ms. Stowe, correct?" she said coolly. "That accusation alone could qualify as defamation. I'll let it go this time, but if you make another claim like that without evidence, I won't."Rhys smiled. "This is Nancy Jean. She's one of the attorneys representing me."Lexi froze.That's not right. Rhys's lawyer was Joshua Hearn, Sydvale's famous divorce attorney, not some glamorous woman who looked like she'd walked out of a magazine.Her eyes involuntarily swept over Vivian. That chest had to be fake. And that figure? Definitely work done.Still, there was no mistaking the woman's sharp, professional demeanor. She was probably another attorney from Hearn's firm, sent to handle routine matters for Rhys.Damn it. She had walked straight into that one.
Chapter 11: Dinner for One, Ruin for Four
After fuming for a while, the Stowes had no choice but to leave.With Rhys gone, dinner had suddenly become a problem.Britt usually bought the groceries, but that was as far as her contribution went. Every evening, they simply waited for Rhys to come home and cook. Why bother lifting a finger when they had someone willing to do everything for them?Now their cook was gone, and Britt had no intention of stepping into the kitchen herself.Besides, in their minds, they were about to be rich. So they decided to splurge and eat out at the Maison Arden, a fairly upscale restaurant near Maple Grove where dinner could easily run several hundred dollars per person.Rhys watched them disappear inside and narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.He had dealt the Stowes blow after blow over the past two days, but it still wasn't enough. Not after what they had done to him in his previous life. Not after the humiliation, the betrayal, and the memory of being carved apart while still alive. He pulled out h
Chapter 10: Four Hundred Million Reasons to Fall Off Your Chair
“Lexi, I’m dropping your case.”Lexi went still the moment she heard the words.Her lawyer, Rex Swanson, sounded furious. “How much have you been hiding from me? Do you have any idea how badly you’ve blindsided me?”Lexi frowned. “What are you talking about?”“Chris isn’t Rhys’s biological son, is he?”So that was it. Lexi drew a slow breath. She had known this was going to come out sooner or later.“No, he isn’t,” she admitted. “But that has nothing to do with Rhys hiding marital assets.”“Actually, it has a lot to do with it now.” Rex cut her off sharply.“I just got a call from your ex-husband’s attorney. Rhys isn't just defending himself. Now he wants the property settlement reopened on the grounds that you deceived him about Chris’s paternity. He’s also seeking damages for emotional distress.”Lexi tightened her grip on the phone.Rex let out a frustrated sigh. “And do you even know who Rhys hired?”Lexi said nothing.“Joshua Hearn!” Rex snapped. “He’s one of the best divorce att
Chapter 9: Hire the Best, Bleed Them Dry
“Rhys, I’ve already hired an attorney and filed a petition with the court to reopen the division of our marital assets.”Lexi’s voice over the phone was cold and clipped.“Send me your current address. The court needs somewhere to serve you.”Heh. So she actually sued. Not that he was surprised.“Give me a minute,” he said calmly. “I’ll be hiring an attorney too. From now on, if you have anything to say, say it to my lawyer.Then he hung up. He had neither the time nor the patience to waste playing games in court.If she wanted a legal battle, fine. He would give her one. And he would make sure she regretted starting it..Rhys went straight to Sydvale’s top divorce firm and asked for Joshua Hearn, one of the city’s most sought-after divorce attorneys.As luck would have it, Joshua had an opening that afternoon.The receptionist glanced at Rhys before giving him a polite warning.“Mr. Darby, you’re aware of Mr. Hearn’s billing rate, correct?”“Three thousand an hour.”Rhys nodded. “I’m
Chapter 8: Eighty Million in Renovation and a War in the Courts
“It’s true. Chris isn’t Rhys’s son.”There was no point hiding it anymore.With Michael, Britt, and Henry storming back into the house looking ready to tear someone apart, Lexi had no choice but to admit the truth.Yet the moment the words left her mouth, resentment surged through her. She had explicitly told them not to go looking for Rhys. But had they listened? Of course not. Even if they absolutely felt the need to confront him, they could have pulled him aside. Instead, they had screamed at him in front of half the neighborhood. Now, everyone in Maple Grove would probably know. Lexi Stowe had cheated on her husband. How the hell was she supposed to show her face around the neighborhood now?“You… how could you?!”Michael’s face turned crimson. His hand trembled, too furious to get the words out at first.“How could you be so damn careless?” he finally spat. “You actually let that bastard figure it out!”He wasn't angry about the affair; he was only furious that she hadn't cove
Chapter 7: Dirty Laundry on the Front Lawn
At the mention of twelve million dollars, all three of them suddenly found a remarkable burst of energy and shot out the door.Michael and Henry made it to the mansion first, only to find a crowd already gathered outside.The property sat behind an elegant wrought-iron fence, with a landscaped front yard separating the street from the house. Since no one could get inside, the neighbors had clustered along the fence, craning their necks for a better look.“Michael!” Someone spotted him immediately.Then came the congratulations.“Michael, your family really made it this time!”“You lucky bastard. Where did Lexi find a husband like that?”“Seriously, Michael, you never told us Rhys was this loaded!”Michael's face grew darker with every word.Henry, panting heavily beside him, stared at the massive house with naked greed.Unable to contain himself any longer, he strode straight toward the gate and pounded on it with his fist.Bang! Bang! Bang!“RHYS! GET YOUR ASS OUT HERE!”Inside the m
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